So it’s highly likely you’ve been approached at some point when on holiday, in one way or another, by someone who wants to talk to you about timeshare!
A couple from California have told their story regarding a timeshare pitch they attended which was supposed to take 90 minutes of their time in Puerto Vallarta.
They were approached by a salesperson from Puerto Bahia Villa’s and Spa who offered them $450 to attend the presentation. It turned out to be an excessive, eight hour day! The reason they stayed…. they were holding on for the $450 that was offered.
The husband stated that this was ‘the start of his nightmare’, the wife has claims that the salespeople were ‘persuasive and they kept pushing and pushing, and when they said no they would talk to them about something else’
The couple claim that six hours into the presentation, without the couple asking, they were offered a glass of red wine and an already opened can of beer. The husband chose to drink his already opened beer because he was thirsty. Not too long after this, the wife has said that her husband ‘appeared to be in a trance like state’ and that she was feeling ‘very sick’
They then declared that their next action was initialing numerous pages of a timeshare contract.
A former employee of the company has said that part of the process during the timeshare presentation was to serve alcohol at what could be considered an ‘opportune’ moment i.e when the guests have sat for hours during the ‘pitch’, and that the alcohol gives the guests a buzz, after not eating or drinking for such a long time in that environment. He says ‘they purposely use alcohol to get people to the point where they can’t think straight – and that is when you zero in on them and take advantage. He says that he feels ‘dirty and ashamed’ of his behaviour.
He also advised that the salespeople are instructed to say ‘anything’ to get the sale, even to go as far as pretending to be guests who have signed a contract and celebrating with champagne!
Profeco, Mexico’s consumer protection agency say that they have received numerous complaints regarding Puerto Bahia. ‘The sales people are aggressive’ says Gabriela Cervantes of Profeco. She has also warned that ‘the process for cancelling, in my experience, is not easy’
The couple from California, went to the Profeco offices in Puerto Vallarta, the day after they signed the timeshare agreement. It was there that they were advised they had five days to get out of the contract and they also contacted their credit card company to cancel the card they paid with. The couple took and hand delivered, a letter, written for them in Spanish by the Profeco cancelling their contract.
At this point, you would hope that their ordeal had come to an end, however as soon as they returned to their home, the collection calls began, threatening legal action if the fees weren’t paid.
The couple claim that they endured this for 17 month until Kurtis Ming visited Puerto Bahia. He spoke to a sales person at Puerto Bahia who said that ‘alcohol is only used in celebration, once a contract is signed’. Ming retorted ‘Do you ever try to get people drunk to get them to sign’ The answer was a resounding ‘no’ Ming asked ‘Do you think people are making this up’ to which the salesperson responded ‘I’m not in their head, I cannot answer that for you’.
Ming went on to produce the cancellation letter from the American couple and asked why they were still being asked to pay, she was reminded of the cancellation policy in Mexico and was asked to resolve this situation for the couple.
The couple has said that the intervention has done more to help them in the two weeks it took, than they have been able to do in the 17 months of the ordeal. The couple did eventually receive their $450 they were promised for attending the presentation. However when asked whether it was worth it…. the answer I’m sure you can guess was a resounding ‘no!’
The moral of the story, make sure you understand what you are agreeing to when you say you will attend a presentation. Don’t be afraid to get up and leave! They cannot physically stop you….. and what they promised you, probably won’t come to fruition.
For more information regarding this article or assistance in any other timeshare related issues please contact the TCA on 01908 881058 or email: info@TimeshareConsumerAssociation.org.uk